The low-key prince summons trainees from the Imperial Household Department at the start of the game.

Cao Gonggong's figure disappeared into the shadows behind the screen, and the Imperial Study returned to silence.

The candlelight burned quietly. Zhou Qian did not continue reviewing the memorials. Instead, he leaned back on the dragon throne, his fingers tapping slowly on the armrests, the rhythm growing slower and slower until it finally stopped.

He suddenly spoke, his voice not loud, but carrying an undeniable chill: "Come out."

On the gold-brick floor directly in front of the imperial desk, a dark shadow silently emerged from the ground.

It didn't come in from outside the door, nor did it jump down from the beam; it seeped out from the gaps between the gold bricks.

Like black water, or like black smoke, it silently gathered into a human figure kneeling on one knee.

The man was completely wrapped in a dark black night suit, with only his eyes showing. His eyes had no pupils, only a deep, unfathomable dark red.

This is the most secretive power of the royal family.

Shadow Guard!

Unlike the Xunfengwei, which was dedicated to monitoring officials and suppressing local authorities.

It is also different from the Hidden Dragon Guard, which specializes in intelligence gathering and dragon vein protection.

The Shadow Guards are the sharpest blade in the hands of the Zhou imperial family, responsible only to the emperor.

They never appeared in public, never left any records, and there wasn't even a single word about them in the royal archives.

"The Hidden Dragon Guard sentries in all the prefectures along the route of the Northern Inspection Convoy have been activated."

"Guo Pu and his two companions from Qingzhou arrived at the northern border the day before yesterday and joined the convoys of the Fifth Prince and the Ninth Prince."

"The traces of the Changsheng Sect's remnants' activities in the northern border have been preliminarily identified, covering the area of ​​abandoned military towns north of Yunzhou and west of Yanmen Pass."

"His Highness the First Prince and His Highness the Sixth Prince arrived in the Northern Territory yesterday. His Highness the First Prince has already made contact with several retired officials in the area."

"The Second Prince, the Fourth Prince, and the Eighth Prince will arrive in Jiangxi in one more day."

"The Third Prince and the Seventh Prince are in Qingzhou. The Third Prince has investigated all the Yin energy nodes in Qingzhou and is currently overseeing the repair of an abandoned Yin-suppressing stele."

"There are no obvious changes in the local aristocratic families yet, but the collateral branches of the Chen family of Yingchuan, the Zheng family of Xingyang, the Lu family of Fanyang, and the Li family of Jinyang in various prefectures and cities in Jiangnan have been frequently visiting each other recently, seemingly colluding in secret."

The Shadow Guard's voice was deep and flat, devoid of any emotional fluctuation, as if he were reading an official document that had nothing to do with him.

"Very good." Zhou Qian removed his fingers from the armrest, slowly stood up, walked to the "Ten Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains" painting on the wall, stood with his hands behind his back, and said, "Immediately convey my secret decree: order the garrisons in each prefecture to strengthen their surveillance of the collateral branches of local aristocratic families. Anyone who hoards goods, inflates prices, or spreads rumors under the guise of the Yin Qi chaos shall be detained without waiting for the Ministry of Justice's approval."

"Then issue another decree to the Patrol Guard, instructing them to keep a close watch on all aspects of the three lines of salt and iron, canal transport, and textile manufacturing in Jiangnan. Anyone found to be using the opportunity of patrolling under the guise of yin energy to engage in private transactions, transfer assets, or destroy account books shall be arrested on the spot."

"Furthermore, I hereby convey my oral decree to the First Prince and the Second Prince, instructing them to pay close attention to the current situation of retired officials in the local area during their inspection tour."

"These are all veteran officials who have rendered meritorious service to the court. The court should pay more attention to how they are doing in their hometowns."

The Shadow Guard's dark red eyes flickered slightly in the darkness.

He knew the significance of this secret edict.

The fact that the emperor can detain collateral relatives of aristocratic families without waiting for the Ministry of Justice's approval means that the emperor has given the local garrison the power to act first and report later.

Taking control of the salt, iron, canal transport, and textile industries locally means His Majesty is about to take action against the core economic lifelines of the major aristocratic families.

Having the princes "care" about retired officials was a brilliant move that killed two birds with one stone.

This would allow the princes to verify the true situation of retired officials suppressing the evil spirits in various regions, and also allow the princes to inadvertently collect the opinions and evidence of these old ministers about local powerful families for the court.

He bowed his head and replied, "As you command," before slowly sinking into the gaps between the gold bricks, like a drop of ink falling into a deep pool.

"Wait a minute," Zhou Qian suddenly said, his voice tinged with hesitation.

The Shadow Guard's figure reformed, still kneeling on one knee, awaiting the next decree.

Zhou Qian remained silent for a while before slowly saying, "His Highness the Ninth Prince is young and this is his first time traveling so far. His safety is our top priority."

"I need to know in advance what's happening in every prefecture the imperial tour convoy passes through."

"If anything goes wrong, don't wait for his orders. Take action immediately. He is my son, and I want him to return safely."

The Shadow Guard's dark red eyes flickered slightly, and he bowed his head in response, "As you command."

Then it silently sank into the ground, and silence returned to the imperial study.

Zhou Qian stood before the "Ten Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains" painting, his hands behind his back, gazing at the magnificent landscape in the painting, his eyes as cold as two pieces of iron just taken out of an ice cellar.

Everyone thought that he sent his sons on a tour of inspection in place of the Emperor to train his sons, to appease the people, to deal with the rising evil spirits, and to prepare for the loosening of the seal on the founding emperor.

But they were all wrong.

He sent his princes to tour the land on behalf of the emperor, partly for training purposes.

The prince is bait, a flag planted in the ground, a stick used to stir up this murky water.

For three hundred years since the founding of the Great Zhou Dynasty, the biggest cancer has never been the barbarians in the north or the evil cultivators on the grasslands, but rather the powerful clans that have entrenched themselves in the regions.

They monopolized the legal system, controlled land, managed trade routes, placed their sons in official positions, formed cliques and pursued personal gain in the imperial court, and held absolute power in the provinces.

Emperors throughout history have wanted to weaken them, but each time they hesitated to act for fear of inadvertently harming them.

If they cut too lightly, they'll come back stronger; if they cut too heavily, they'll launch a joint counterattack.

The powerful clans cannot be severed, because they are an integral part of the foundation of the Great Zhou Dynasty.

But he insisted on trying; he wanted to remove these deep-seated malignant tumors one by one during his term in office.

The imperial tour is only the first step.

When the princes arrived in their respective regions, the spies planted by those powerful families in the local government offices would naturally start to move, either currying favor, testing them, or secretly causing trouble.

Whoever touches whom is a spy, and whoever curries favor with whom is a member of a powerful family.

Sitting in the capital, he could clearly understand the distribution of power of aristocratic families in the localities simply by looking at the lists of official changes reported by various prefectures.

The second step was to have the Shadow Guards work with the Wind Patrol Guards to eliminate these exposed moles one by one, with the charges already prepared.

During the period of Yin Qi chaos, people inflated prices, spread rumors, engaged in illicit transactions, and transferred assets.

The third step involves the Ministry of Personnel, the Ministry of Justice, and the Censorate working together after the chaos caused by the Yin Qi has subsided.

All local officials connected with powerful families were investigated and punished one by one; those who should be dismissed were dismissed, those whose property was confiscated were confiscated, and those who should be exiled were exiled.

He wanted to let those powerful families know that the Great Zhou Dynasty belonged to the Zhou family, not just to a few of them.

All of this is predicated on the princes being safe enough.

So he had the Shadow Guards protect him from the shadows, the Hidden Dragon Guards keep watch in the open, and the Imperial Observatory personnel follow him.

But he also knew that no matter how strong the Shadow Guards and Hidden Dragon Guards were, they couldn't stop people's hearts.

He arranged for the eldest and second princes to lead the teams, the fourth prince to be the second prince's deputy, and the fifth and ninth princes to accompany him. These arrangements were the greatest protection in themselves.

The powerful families are not a monolithic entity; each has its own interests and its own agenda.

The more he placed the princes among them, the more wary they became of each other and the more cautious they became in their actions.

This is the art of imperial rule. He is not afraid of the powerful families making moves, but he is afraid of them not making any moves. The more ruthless they are, the more ruthlessly he will suppress them.

As night deepened, the candlelight in the imperial study finally burned out with a soft "poof."

Zhou Qian sat alone in the darkness, gazing at the cold moon outside the window, and suddenly remembered many years ago.

When he was a young prince, his father, the emperor, would sit in the darkness and hand him a chessboard, asking him questions.

Eldest, second, and third sons, who do you think is most like me?

He didn't answer, and his father didn't press him for an answer. He simply patted him on the shoulder and said something.

"You'll understand once you sit on this dragon throne."

Now he finally knows.

The person sitting on this dragon throne is not an emperor, but a mind that cannot stop, eyes that cannot close, and a heart that cannot soften.

He closed his eyes and slowly exhaled in the darkness.

Sons, don't blame your father for being ruthless.

Your father has played half of this game for you; the other half is up to you.